Title:  Making a difference

Francois Sieberhagen

God has made us what we are, and in our union with Christ Jesus he has created us for a life of good deeds, which he has already prepared for us to do.  Ephesians 2:10

It is not always easy to photograph people while they are involved doing charity work.  Simply because not many people enjoy the spotlight when involved in something they see as their calling.

When visiting a feeding scheme in Danville, Pretoria, I struggled to get pictures of the people involved in the outreach.  When asked why they were involved, the general answer was, “we are doing it out of love.  Love for Jesus and love for those in need.”

On another occasion I had the opportunity to go and visit a centre where abused children received counselling.  In this centre I met people who have such great love and compassion for the people they work with.  There were teddy bears everywhere.  When I asked about the huge number of bears, the answer came quickly.  “The teddies comfort the children while they cuddle them.  We are believers and because we are thankful for what Christ did for us, we reach out to others” was the unambiguous answer when I asked about the reason behind such a selfless task.

While visiting a Muslim country three catholic sisters told me their story of service, working in a hospital as nurses.  “We try to be Christ for these people.  The women here look down on us because we are not married and we do not have children.  All we can do is to live Christ,” was their simple but straight answer.  Pose for a photo?  Never!

Just like these people mentioned, there are many believers who reach out to other people on a daily basis.  Suffering comes in many forms and there are needs all over the world, also in South Africa.  Fortunately there are believers who would rather focus on the smaller picture and feel they can make a real difference at grass root levels.

This is also the challenge presented to us to go out and make a difference in other people’s lives.  This is our calling as Christians.

Prayer:  Lord, open my eyes so that I can see how to make a difference in people’s lives.  Amen.